, also known as , was a Japanese ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...

'' of the late

Sengoku The was the period in Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as the period's start ...

through the early

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

. Renowned as a man of great ambition, he succeeded

Takenaka Hanbei , who was also known as Hanbei (半兵衛), was a Japanese people, Japanese samurai during the Sengoku period of the 16th century. Hanbei was the castle lord in command of Bodaiyama Castle. He was a chief strategist and adviser of Toyotomi Hideyos ...

as a chief strategist and adviser to

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...

. Kuroda became a Christian when he was 38, and received "Simeon Josui" as a baptismal name (''rekishijin''). His quick wit, bravery, and loyalty were respected by his warriors.

Early life

Kuroda Yoshitaka was born in

Himeji 260px, Himeji City Hall is a city located in Hyōgo Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 525,682 in 227,099 households and a population density of 980 persons per km2. The total area of the city is ...

(姫路) on December 22, 1546, as Mankichi (万吉), the son of Kuroda Mototaka. It is believed that the Kuroda originated from

Ōmi Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan, which today comprises Shiga Prefecture. It was one of the provinces that made up the Tōsandō Circuit (subnational entity), circuit. Its nickname is . Under the ''Engishiki'' classification system, ...

. Yoshitaka's grandfather Shigetaka brought the family to Himeji and resided in Gochaku Castle (御着城), east of Himeji Castle. Shigetaka served as a senior retainer of Kodera Masamoto, the lord of Himeji, and was so highly praised that Shigetaka's son Mototaka was allowed to marry Masamoto's adopted daughter (Akashi Masakaze’s daughter) and use the Kodera name. Yoshitaka became the head of the Kuroda family at the age of 21 when his father, Mototaka, retired.

Military life

Service under Nobunaga

In 1577, when

was spearheading the Oda clan's advance into the

Chūgoku region The , also known as the region, is the westernmost region of Honshū, the largest island of Japan. It consists of the prefectures of Hiroshima, Okayama, Shimane, Tottori and Yamaguchi. As of the 2020 census, it has a population of 7,328,339 ...

, he pledged loyalty to the Oda. Yoshitaka, together with the sickly

, served as Hideyoshi's strategists and assisted in the Chugoku campaign against the

Mōri clan The was a Japanese clan, Japanese samurai clan descended from Ōe no Hiromoto. Ōe no Hiromoto was descended from the Fujiwara clan. The family's most illustrious member, Mōri Motonari, greatly expanded the clan's power in Aki Province. Durin ...

. In 1578, Arioka/Itami Castle's lord,

Araki Murashige was a retainer of Ikeda Katsumasa, head of the powerful "Setssu-Ikeda clan" of Settsu Province. Under Katsumasa, Murashige sided with Oda Nobunaga following Nobunaga's successful campaign to establish power in Kyoto. Military life Murashige b ...

, concluded an alliance with the Mōri to revolt against the Oda. An allied Kodera Masamoto also hatched a plot to cooperate with Araki. Then, Kuroda went to Arioka castle to prevail on Araki not to defect. Araki chose to imprison Yoshitaka instead. As a result, Nobunaga thought that Yoshitaka had defected to Araki's side and was furious. Yoshitaka's son, Shōjumaru (later

Kuroda Nagamasa was a ''daimyō'' during the late Azuchi–Momoyama and early Edo periods. He was the son of Kuroda Kanbei, Toyotomi Hideyoshi's chief strategist and adviser. Biography Nagamasa's childhood name was Shojumaru (松寿丸). In 1577 his fathe ...

) was sentenced to death by Nobunaga, but was saved by

. Araki's revolt eventually concluded in 1579 at the Siege of Itami, culminating in Yoshitaka's rescue. Due to his long imprisonment (with lack of space for sleeping and sitting), Yoshitaka suffered a leg disorder and lost his eyesight in one eye for the rest of his life. In 1582, he fought in the Siege of Takamatsu against the Mōri clan.

Service under Hideyoshi

He fought at the

Battle of Yamazaki The was fought in 1582 in Yamazaki, Japan, located in current-day Kyoto Prefecture. This battle is sometimes referred to as the Battle of Mt. Tennō (天王山の戦い ''Tennō-zan no tatakai''). In the Honnō-ji Incident, Akechi Mitsuhide, ...

in 1582 under Hideyoshi, avenging the death of

Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...

. He participated in the

Battle of Shizugatake The took place during the Sengoku period of Japan between Toyotomi Hideyoshi (then Hashiba Hideyoshi) and Shibata Katsuie in Nagahama, Shiga, Shizugatake, Ōmi Province over a period of two days beginning on the 20th day of the fourth month of ...

in 1583 and the Battle of Komaki-Nagakute in 1584. He also led Toyotomi forces in the campaign to conquer Shikoku in 1585. Shortly before 1587, Yoshitaka was ordered by Hideyoshi to lead an attack into

Siege of Kagoshima The 1587 siege of Kagoshima took place during Japan's Sengoku period, and was the last stand of the Shimazu family against the forces of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. This was the final battle in Hideyoshi's campaign to take Kyūshū. Following the S ...

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...

. Along with him was the Christian ''daimyō''

Takayama Ukon , born and also known as Dom Justo Takayama (c. 1552/1553 - 5 February 1615) was a Kirishitan, Japanese Catholic daimyō and samurai during the Sengoku period that saw rampant Anti-Catholicism, anti-Catholic sentiment. Takayama was baptize ...

. After seeing the thriving Christian population of Kyushu, under Ukon's influence, Yoshitaka was baptized with the name ドン・シメオン (Dom Simeão = Don Simeon). After a visit to the Jesuit-controlled port of Nagasaki, Hideyoshi became fearful of the powerful influence that Jesuits and the Christian ''daimyōs'' wielded. In 1587, he made his famous edict that expelled foreign missionaries and ordered all the Christian samurai under his rule to abandon their faith. While Ukon resisted the edict and lost his status, Yoshitaka gave up his new religion and adopted a monk's habit, calling himself ''Josui'' (如水). Like Naitō Joan (who took his name from Portuguese João), it is believed that Yoshitaka chose his new name from "Josué", the Portuguese version of "

Joshua Joshua ( ), also known as Yehoshua ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ'', Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yŏhōšuaʿ,'' Literal translation, lit. 'Yahweh is salvation'), Jehoshua, or Josue, functioned as Moses' assistant in the books of Book of Exodus, Exodus and ...

". His most prominent act during his short time as a Christian was his arrangement to save a Jesuit mission from Bungo when the Christian ''daimyō'' of that province,

Ōtomo Sōrin , also known as Fujiwara no Yoshishige (藤原義鎮) or Ōtomo Yoshishige (大友義鎮), was a Japanese feudal lord (''daimyō'') of the Ōtomo clan, one of the few to have converted to Catholicism. The eldest son of , he inherited the Funa ...

, was under attack from the

Shimazu clan The were the ''daimyō'' of the Satsuma han, which spread over Satsuma, Ōsumi and Hyūga provinces in Japan. The Shimazu were identified as one of the '' tozama'' or outsider ''daimyō'' familiesAppert, Georges ''et al.'' (1888). in contr ...

Sekigahara campaign

Before the outbreak of Sekigahara conflict between

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

with

Ishida Mitsunari was a Japanese samurai and military commander of the late Sengoku period of Japan. He is probably best remembered as the commander of the Western army in the Battle of Sekigahara following the Azuchi–Momoyama period of the 16th century. He ...

, Yoshitaka and his son,

, made contact with

Ii Naomasa was a general under the Sengoku period ''daimyō'', and later ''shōgun'', Tokugawa Ieyasu.Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598) The Imjin War () was a series of two Japanese invasions of Korea: an initial invasion in 1592 also individually called the "Imjin War", a brief truce in 1596, and a second invasion in 1597 called the Chŏngyu War (). The conflict ended in 159 ...

. In 1600, Yoshitaka was seemingly on the Tokugawa side during the Sekigahara campaign, having clashed against

Ōtomo Yoshimune Ōtomo Yoshimune (大友義統, 15581605) was a Japanese daimyō of the Sengoku period, heir of Otomo Sōrin at the head of the Ōtomo clan. He was the eldest son and successor of Otomo Sōrin as lord of the Bungo Province. His mother was an an ...

at the Battle of Ishigakibaru and also, having participated at the Siege of Yanagawa. It was recorded that the legendary swordsman

Miyamoto Musashi , was a Japanese swordsman, strategist, artist, and writer who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship and undefeated record in his 62 duels. Miyamoto is considered a ''Kensei (honorary title), kensei'' (swo ...

participated in Ishigakibaru battle under the command of Yoshitaka. There is theory that Yoshitaka instead aimed to conquer the entire region of

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa and the other Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Islands). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regio ...

for his own during the major commotion of the Sekigahara campaign, even momentarily conquering seven of the island's provinces, a feat which ended in failure, however, due to Tokugawa Ieyasu's victory in the

Battle of Sekigahara The Battle of Sekigahara (Shinjitai: ; Kyūjitai: , Hepburn romanization: ''Sekigahara no Tatakai'') was an important battle in Japan which occurred on October 21, 1600 (Keichō 5, 15th day of the 9th month) in what is now Gifu Prefecture, ...

Death

After moving to Chikuzen Province which today is part of Fukuoka Prefecture, the Kuroda built a new castle near Hakata-ku, and named it Fukuoka Castle also known as Maizuru Castle or Seki Castle which was completed in the early Edo period for ' daimyō

. After his son

succeeded him, Yoshitaka died on April 19, 1604. His grave is in the Namazuta area of

Iizuka, Fukuoka is a city in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 124,757 in 63833 households, and a population density of 580 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Iizuka is the central city of the Chikuh ...

, near the original site of Namazuta Castle.

Family

*Father: Kuroda Mototaka *Mother: Akashi Masakaze's daughter (1532–1560) *Wife: Kushihashi Teru (1553–1627) *Sons (all by Kushihashi Teru): **

(1568 - 1623, also known as Shoujumaru in childhood) **Kuroda Kumanosuke (1582–1597) *Adopted sons: **Kuroda Kazushige (1571–1656)

Relationship with Hideyoshi

As depicted in historical writings and contemporary television, it is suggested that Kuroda was simultaneously feared by Hideyoshi, despite his attempts to hide his intelligence and influence. It is alleged that Hideyoshi's fear was due to his overwhelming debt to Yoshitaka, having helped him reign over the whole country as his shadow strategist, with Hideyoshi even believing that Kuroda might overthrow him eventually. In addition, Kuroda had a close friendship with

Sen no Rikyū , also known simply as Rikyū, was a Japanese tea master considered the most important influence on the ''chanoyu'', the Japanese "Way of Tea", particularly the tradition of '' wabi-cha''. He was also the first to emphasize several key aspect ...

, known as the founder of the Japanese tea ceremony "wabi-cha", and was later put to death by Hideyoshi himself.

Personality

Kuroda was a frugal person, and he sold used military equipment and personal belongings to his vassals. He saved enough money to pay mercenaries in the Sekigahara War due to his thrifty mind. His last words were, "Do not try to gain other people's favor and do not wish for wealth.""Kanbei Kuroda's quotes". Editional. Meigen Kakugen no Housekibako n.d. Web. 7 December 2015. He was also involved in the project to build principal castles: Himeji Castle,

Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...

Osaka Castle is a Japanese castle in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan. The castle is one of Japan's most famous landmarks and played a major role in the unification of Japan during the sixteenth century of the Azuchi–Momoyama period. Layout Th ...

, and

Hiroshima Castle , sometimes called , is a Japanese castle, castle in Hiroshima, Japan that was the residence of the ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the Hiroshima Domain. The castle was originally constructed in the 1590s, but was largely destroyed by the Atomic bom ...

under the reign of the Toyotomis.

Popular culture

*In the

Sengoku Basara is a series of video games developed and published by Capcom, and a bigger media franchise based on it, including three anime shows, an anime movie, a live action show, and numerous drama CDs, light novels, manga, and stage plays. Its story ...

games and anime, he is seen with chains attached to a metal ball around his hands, and running gags occur when he is near unlocking his chains. *He is a playable character in the video games ''

Samurai Warriors 3 is a hack-and-slash video game developed by Omega Force and published by Tecmo Koei for the Wii. It is the third installment in the ''Samurai Warriors'' series. The game was released in Japan in December 2009 and internationally in 2010 by Nint ...

'' & '' 4'', seen with pale skin and a jade orb as his weapons.

Appendix

Footnotes

References

Bibliography

* *

Ryōtarō Shiba , also known as , was a Japanese author. He is best known for his novels about historical events in Japan and on the Northeast Asian sub-continent, as well as his historical and cultural essays pertaining to Japan and its relationship to the r ...

''Harimanada monogatari'' 播磨灘物語, 1975 vol1~4

Kodansha is a Japanese privately held publishing company headquartered in Bunkyō, Tokyo. Kodansha publishes manga magazines which include ''Nakayoshi'', ''Morning (magazine), Morning'', ''Afternoon (magazine), Afternoon'', ''Evening (magazine), Eveni ...

~ * Andō Hideo 安藤英男. ''Shiden Kuroda Josui'' 史伝黒田如水. Tokyo: Nichibō Shuppansha, 1975. * Harada Tanemasa 原田種眞. ''Kuroda Josui'' 黒田如水. Tokyo: Benseisha 勉誠社, 1996. * Kaneko Kentarō 金子堅太郎. ''Kuroda Josui den'' 黒田如水伝. Tokyo: Bunken Shuppan 文献出版, 1976. * Motoyama Kazuki 本山一城. ''Jitsuroku Takenaka Hanbei to Kuroda Kanbei'' 実錄竹中半兵衛と黒田官兵衛. Tokyo: Murata Shoten 村田書店, 1988. * Yoshikawa, Eiji. (1989) ''Yoshikawa Eiji Rekishi Jidai Bunko'' (''Eiji Yoshikawa's Historical Fiction''), Vol. 44: ''Kuroda Yoshitaka'' (黒田如水). Tokyo: Kodansha.

External links

Kuroda Kanbei Biography at Samurai-Archives.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuroda, Yoshitaka 1546 births 1604 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism Daimyo Samurai Kuroda clan Toyotomi retainers Former Roman Catholics People from Hyōgo Prefecture People from Himeji, Hyōgo